As we enter the last few weeks of the year, now is an opportune time to pause and reflect on the extraordinary successes Virginia agencies have achieved in 2025 (and over the course of the last four years).  All in all, Virginia agencies have streamlined over 35% of regulatory requirements, cut 49% of the words in guidance documents, and saved Virginia citizens $1.4 billion by reducing the cost of bureaucracy.  Here are some of the agencies that have gone above and beyond as part of that work.

 

Ten Virginia agencies achieve a 47.8% or more streamlining of regulatory requirements.

Executive Order 19 set the ambitious goal of streamlining regulatory requirements by 25%.  Back in July of this year, Governor Youngkin set the bar even higher, setting a new goal of 35%.  The agencies listed below have been superstars in that effort, achieving reductions well beyond even the 35% reduction goal.

Top 10: Percent Regulatory Requirements Streamlined
VT	-96.7%
W&M	-83.6%
DOC	-83.2%
DHR	-74.7%
ENERGY	-72.4%
GMU	-62.5%
VDOE	-61.4%
VDOT	-59.5%
DCR	-56.7%
DMAS	-47.8%

 

Fourteen Virginia agencies achieve over a 90% reduction in guidance document length.

Virginia agencies have also done extraordinary work streamlining their guidance documents.  They have cut 49% of the words in guidance documents, which represents roughly 11.9 million words (which is about 20 times the length of War and Peace or 15 times the length of the King James Bible).

Eleven agencies were actually able to cut 100% of their documents on Town Hall, usually by eliminating materials that did not meet the statutory definition of “guidance.”  And three additional agencies came awfully close, achieving a 90% or more reduction in guidance document length, as shown below.

Top 14: Percent Guidance Document Words Reduced
DHRM	-100%
DOF	-100%
VRC	-100%
CNU	-100%
JMU	-100%
NSU	-100%
RU	-100%
VCU	-100%
VMI	-100%
VEC	-100%
VSP	-100%
TRS	-99.0%
VDFP	-97.4%
DOLI	-92.9%